EX-OFFENDERS and long-term unemployed people are using their loaf to get back into the job market.

A new bakery in Bethesda will train people who have come out of prison or have been on the dole to make bread.

The ex-criminals and jobless people will run the bakery store while they are training in the project set up by the probation service in North Wales.

The scheme is the brainchild of Mick Hartley, who works as a youth justice consultant within the North Wales Probation Area.

The premises in the High Street aren't ready yet, so in the meantime the would-be bakers are using the kitchen at the local rugby club.

The aim is to equip ex-offenders and other people who have been out of work for more than six months with skills and qualifications that will help them find a job.

A talented amateur baker for many years, Mick had been keen to set up his own bakery for some time.

He said: "I thought it would be a good idea and I put the idea to the probation service and they thought it was a great idea and they are sponsoring the project.

"To attract funding we needed avoluntary organisation to administer everything so we asked the crime reduction charity, Nacro, and that's how it's worked out. We got £60,000 of funding from the Welsh Assembly to equip the bakery."

The people on the scheme are employed for 20 weeks during which time they learn skills, get qualifications and personal training in searching for a job.

Nacro officer Darren Laverty said: "We're not trying to turn out bakers, we're trying give people who are long-term un-employed some skills, some qualifications and a CV.

"The bakery is a stepping stone back into the world of work - so they can present themselves to employers and enhance their job chances.

Among the group learning new bakery skills is 33-year-old Colin Burns, who is very enthusiastic about the project.

He said: "When I'm looking for future employment I can say that I've been working in a bakery in Bethesda. It's something constructive to put on the CV.

"I have done a lot of kitchen work before so I know about kitchen hygiene and cleanli-ness, but I have never baked bread before.

"So far we have made plain brown bread and plain white bread, wholemeal bread, soda bread and a sweet one with syrup and sultanas which we've called Spotty Dog."

Adrian Jones, 35, said: "It's totally different to what I've done in the past. The last job I did Iwas laying tarmac on the roads.

"I get to take the odd loaf home to family and friends and they're loving it. Every day they are waiting for me to come back with something new."